Betty's Birthday
by Emily Hoyt
Summary: It's Betty's birthday, but she doesn't want to see Daniel at her party. Does she?


People milled about the house, looking at all the colorful decorations. Betty's friends, family and neighbors were all gathered at her father's house to celebrate her birthday. Frosty drinks were being toasted to her health, some voices slurred from the consumption of drinks prior to the toast. Betty's smile beamed between the faces of her father, sister and nephew while Daniel watched proudly from further back.

He knew she had seen him, but he did his best not to intrude. Betty saw him day in, day out and he knew he had been invited to be polite; he was the last person she wanted to see on her special day. Hanging back, he slipped away to the kitchen and helped himself to a third margarita. That was when Ignacio returned to the cuisine area, halting when he saw Daniel.

"Hey there, Daniel," Ignacio said, smiling as he headed towards the back door.

"Hello, Mr. Suarez. Do you need a hand?" he offered and followed Betty's father to the grill in the backyard. The elder man led the way and opened the lid. Flames rose up and Daniel jumped back in surprise. "Whoa!" he mumbled as he nearly stumbled, but luckily caught himself.

"I take it you never leaned the art of the grill," he said with a chuckle. Daniel shook his head. "You're going to. Here," he said, passing the large spatula to Daniel and stepping aside. Immediately, Daniel tensed.

"Wait, what…" he started before setting down his drink and rolling up the sleeves of his dress shirt.

"Okay, slide it under the patty and feel the weight. You got it? Okay… Now, give your wrist a kind of twist so the top side lands face down." With a flick, Daniel turned the meat patty over and the fire beneath sizzled anew. "That's it! You're a natural, Daniel," Ignacio said with a smile and pat on the back.

"Really?"

"Yeah!" Ignacio moved away for a moment while Daniel continued to flip the meat patties. When he returned, he had two packages of Italian sausages to add to the charcoal. Daniel watched as Ignacio placed the long tubes quickly on the grill's surface and stepped back to watch them sizzle. They smelled wonderful.

"So, Mr. Suarez, what else should a family man be able to do?"

"Be honest."

"With all due respect, Mr. Suarez, I could've guessed that."

"No, Daniel… be honest… with me." Daniel's heart plummeted. Was Betty alright? Was something wrong and Ignacio thought that perhaps she had confided in her boss instead of her sister or friend Christina? He sighed.

"Sure," he mumbled, turning his attention back to the round pieces of ground beef.

"Daniel, tell me something, _por favor_… Are you in love with my daughter?"

The burger on the spatula would have fallen off to the grassy ground if he had not managed to regain his bearings so quickly. He finished turning the patties before facing Betty's father.

"Mr. Suarez… um… Betty is–"

"Daniel, please… I'm not blind and I'm as red-blooded a male as you. Do you love Betty?"

"I… well, really I…" Daniel stammered a few times before taking a deep breath. "Yes, Mr. Suarez, I do. And, until this moment, I thought I had done relatively well at hiding it," he mumbled, unable to lift his eyes to meet the wise man's gaze.

"You have, Daniel. Everyone else is oblivious," he smiled, suppressing a chuckle when Daniel's eyes lifted hopefully. "But, Daniel, I'm a father… I'm _her_ father; I have eagle eyes when my daughters are concerned. There's very little I miss when I watch the way my daughter interacts with someone."

"The guests are wondering…" Betty froze on the stair at the sight of Daniel and her father. She placed her glasses. "Hi, Daniel… you… you're grilling?" she murmured in surprise. Daniel smiled proudly.

"With your father's help, I'll be able to cook myself a whole meal."

"I'm working on him," Ignacio laughed, clapping Daniel on the shoulder. "He'll be a fine family man someday." Daniel's head lowered abruptly and Betty made a stopping sign, dragging her index finger across her throat. "What?"

"After Daniel Jr.," Daniel murmured gently, "I'm not so sure about that."

"Daniel," Betty sighed, stepping off the back porch and coming closer to stand beside him. "Anyone with eyes could see that your loved him and, even when you found out he wasn't your biological son, you were still ready to fight for him," Betty said and touched his hand. His eyes lifted to hers for a moment before looking past her to her father who smiled and nodded. A grin spread across Daniel's face in return and his gaze swung back to Betty. "You're going to find someone."

"Actually," he mumbled, casting the briefest look to her father, whose grin widened, "I have…"

Silence fell around them, the sizzling and buzzing fading away to stillness as her eyes lifted to his, her mouth hanging open as she failed to find her words. She struggled to find her normal chirpy smile and managed something similar, but not quite it. Daniel smiled and looked to Betty's father.

"Mr. Suarez," he said, "what do you think?" Almost immediately, her eyes began to move back and forth between the two men.

"You told my father about the woman you want to date?" she asked in confusion, making Daniel chuckle.

"It's a touch more serious than that, Betty; I'm in love."

Daniel knew that look. Her back stiffened, her chin lifted defiantly and she began to blink her eyes rapidly, trying to hold back the tears that always accompanied that kind of blinking. She was desperate to flee to her room, he could tell, to break down in tears, but made no move towards the house. Standing her ground, she scrunched up her face in confusion and put her hands on her hips.

"Whatever," she mumbled as strongly as she could manage. "Why tell my dad about it?"

"Well, I needed to ask his permission if I wanted to date his daughter, didn't I?"

Betty's eyes narrowed for a split second and her mouth snapped shut as she turned the words over in her mind. She looked up at her father with glistening eyes.

"_Hilda_?" she whispered very softly, her arms falling limply to her sides. Her father would surely understand how unbearable that would be for her and find a way to get her excused from their company to dissolve into tears in her room. Instead, he was smiling when she looked towards him and Daniel stepped closer to her, pulling her into his arms with a relieved sigh.

"No, Betty, I'm not in love with Hilda."

Tears poured unabashedly down her cheeks as her arms lifted delicately to his back, her grip tightening at his shoulder blades. He pulled her closer and stroked her hair, pressing soft kisses to her temples and the top of her head, his hands leaving her back to reach up and cradle her face. She held her breath as he leaned in slowly, halting when he was only an inch away and lifting his head once more. Insecurities flooded her, but when she noticed Daniel looking over at her father, she smiled.

"Mr. Suarez?" he mumbled, Betty's head turning to her father with a smile, which he returned.

"I haven't seen my daughter smile like that in ages. If this is what she wants, I give my consent."

At Ignacio's words, the smallest glimmer of doubt flashed in Daniel's eyes and he looked down at Betty. However, the sight of the wide smile on her face was all the reassurance he needed. With a deep breath, he approached her lips once more and the air tingled between them until Betty paused and tugged Daniel towards the side of the house, out of her father's view.

"Sorry, but I can't imagine our first kiss being right in front of my dad and–"

"You talk to much," he muttered and wasted no more time in pulling her into his arms and finally pressing his lips to hers. Her arms wrapped around his neck and she clung to his solid frame as she swayed with the rush of emotions. His hands cupped her cheeks and, for a moment, he broke the kiss to look at her face when he felt the droplets of moisture beneath his fingers. "Betty?" he whispered.

"I love you, too, Daniel," she breathed out, smiling despite her tears as she stared up at him. Slowly, his concerned expression slid back to a smile and he subtly licked his lips before lowering his lips to hers once more.

His mouth worked tenderly over hers, massaging them and shaping them as he wanted them, letting the tip of his tongue flick over the center of her top lip. She let out the tiny whimper that had been caught at the back of her throat a moment ago and he felt his libido speed up several notches. His tongue teased her lip again and, this time, she parted her lips and let her tongue reach out to his, the tips touching and sending bolts of lightening through their bodies.

Her hands moved a little lower on his back and rested just above his belt for a moment before he lifted his lips off hers ever so reluctantly. His eyes burned a bright blue unlike anything she had ever seen and she felt pure fire flow through her body. She had made him like this and knowing she had that kind of power made her feel like a different person.

"Betty…" he whispered, his breath a little ragged. "There's nothing I would love more than to find the nearest private area and make love to you until neither of us can walk…" he said in a rush, watching her eyes narrow in accord while her blushing cheeks revealed a sense of embarrassment. "I guess no one has ever been quite so blunt with you. All that aside, though, this party is in your honor. You can't just disappear."

"Right… Tonight, then…" she said softly, and made to move back to where her father was standing, but he refused to let go of her wrist. "Daniel," she laughed as he tugged her back against him.

"Not tonight…" he murmured into her hair and she wondered momentarily if she was falling, but when she opened her eyes, it was not her that had dropped to her knees, but Daniel. He looked up at her. "Every night… from now on…" he said softly and she felt fresh tears sting the corners of her eyes. "I never want to see a man lay a finger on you… except for me… and it'll be a whole lot more than just my fingers."

Betty shivered and her lower abdomen tightened and flipped a few times, heat spreading down lower and lower. His face was far too low. She needed him at eye level. She tugged at his hands to get him to stand up, but he shook his head and frantically began to search his pockets for something.

"I don't… I need…" Finally, he withdrew his hand from his pocket and looked just past Betty at a three inch piece of string on the ground by her side. He lunged for it and cleaned it as best he could before looking back up at her. "Now, I'm going to be even more honest; I don't just want to date you, Betty. I want to marry you… It doesn't have to be tomorrow or even next month. It'll be whenever you want, but someday… I want you to be my Mrs. Meade," he said quickly and took her hand in his tenderly, tying the little piece of string around her left ring finger. She gasped softly as tears flooded her eyes while a smile beamed beneath. "Will you marry me?" he asked softly and laughed as she dropped to her knees in front of him as well, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"_Yes_," she breathed against his neck and nearly keeled over when he pressed a kiss to her neck just below her ear. "_Yes."_ Her voice grew a little stronger and he pressed another kiss to the same spot, making her grunt. "Daniel…" she breathed out unevenly. "Are you sure there's no way I can get out of this party?"


End file.
